Horror is a genre that seeks to find a negative emotion from the audience. Horror

films often play on the audience’s fears to create scenes that will scare them. Most

horror films use particular forms and conventions to create a frightening and

intimidating atmosphere. Most horror films use the same types of

settings, props, characters and themes. These things define a horror movie for the

audience and help the director know what reaction the audience will give.

Most horror movies consist of the same type of settings. Including;

• Graveyards

• Abandoned Houses/Buildings/Spaces

• Cabins in the country

• Basements

• Haunted Houses

• Places that have significance to one of the characters

Most are set in the night time when it is dark and the characters are alone. This

creates suspension and tension for the audience as they know the character is

about to run into danger.

It is very unlikely for the movies to happen in the day time unless it’s the

beginning of the movie when the characters are first introduced.

The Protagonist: This character tends to be a woman who

comes face to face with the killer of the movie. She tends to

be the smartest out of the group thus resulting in the last

surviving person in the movie. Sometimes she ends up dead

sometimes not. An example of this would be Dana in Cabin in

the Woods.

The Unlikely Hero: This is the character that ends up

shocking the audience due to a change in behavior or

character and ends up saving the day. This character is

usually the quiet boy or geek. An example of this would be

Holden in Cabin in the Woods.

The Antagonist: This character is the one both the audience

and characters are afraid of. This tends to be the

killer/villain of the movie. An example of this would be

Kayako in The Grudge.

The Sex Appeal: This character tends to be a girl and is

commonly the first to die due to her stupidity. She is known

for showing her body. An example of this would be Chugs in

Sorority Row.

Horror genre themes are used to scare the audience and give them a thrill or

adrenaline boost. It gives the audience combinations of real life and fiction stories.

This mixture creates the idea that your worst nightmares are coming true.

Horror themes include;

• Demons

• Hauntings

• Religion

• Good

• Evil

The theme of the movie has a great effect on the structure. Horror films are known to

begin with an equilibrium, having everything fine, until a disruption occurs. Most

horror movies end with a disequilibrium, using cliff hangers I order for there to be a

sequel.

To create an effect on the audience most horror movies use the same

colours/props to show the genre. Colours often associated with horror are dark

colours e.g. black, grey, red. Props often associated with horror are weapons

such as knifes, or a scary mask, or an old prop placed in an isolated space.

Most horror movies use these colours and props to signify the horror genre on

advertisement ect.

The film poster for ‘Hide and Seek’ automatically makes us think that it is a

horror movie due to the use of blacks and reds and the isolated space in the

image.